There's been a whole bunch of talk lately that Audi is planning a new supercar to slot into the range above the R8—talk that Audi R&D boss Wolfgang Dürheimer was happy to encourage during the Detroit Auto Show, when he spoke to both Car and Driver and Motor Trend about it. It would be "a straight-forward derivative of the [R18] race car," he told C&D, meaning the discussion revolves around a car motivated by a hybrid diesel-electric powerplant with all-wheel-drive putting the might to the road.

But Automobile Magazine, the publication a former 0-60 EIC once described as "The People Magazine of car mags," is one step ahead of everyone. Not only do they claim to have the inside scoop on the R18-based super sports car, they claim to know enough about it to have commissioned renderings, which show the car's rumored R18-style front grille and headlamps, its full-length tailfin, and other go-fast features designed to make it into a Lamborghini Aventador-fighter (in a friendly sort of way):

The Audi R18-based super sports car will reportedly pack 550 horses of diesel power, and an extra 150 horses of electric motivation. It should be revealed around 2015 or so. Hopefully, it'll look more like an R8 and less like they just Photoshopped a Koenigsegg.